Hand Crafted Memories

Here's my entry for this weeks pencil lines challenge 141 and it fits Shimelle's red day for the month of colour. I haven't managed to complete all of the pages I intended for this months challenge. I wanted to scrap this photo for a little while now, it sat on my counter waiting for the inspiration to fall out of the sky. Then suddenly it did last night, I finished the page at midnight. Why doesn't inspiration come at a time that would allow me an early night one day? I guess that will be one of life's mysteries, like how do you lose socks in the washing machine?

This week over on Stamp with us it's a sketch challenge. I needed a birthday card for a friends birthday so here is my entry for this week. Stampin up products used were: Stamp Sets - Roses in winter, A Rose is a Rose, Circle of Friendship Ink pads - Pretty in Pink, Pixie Pink, Old Olive Papers - Petals & Paisley Punches - 13/8", 11/4", 1" circles Other products: Nestabilities , circles and scallop circles White cardstock with this card.

I'm having one of those weeks where nothing seems to be going right, that's why there hasn't been much activity on here. Every time I tried to make a page or a card I just wasn't happy with what I made. Even this months package from Sarah's cards didn't do the trick.Finally today I've managed my page for this weeks pencil lines challenge and here it is. This is challenge 140 I'm working in Morecambe Bay again for a couple of days this week, so hopefully I'l find my mojo on the way there.

Here is my entry for this weeks Stamp with us challenge, it's a recipe challenge to use 4 patterned papers and two card stock , no other embellishments . This one certainly had me thinking. All products are Stampin up: Card stock - Real read & Whisper white Patterned papers - Summer picnic Punches - Scallop border, Scallop square, Scallop oval & Oval Stamp set - Cheer & Wishes Ink pad - Basic black

I was away this week for a few days and missed some of the challenges over on Shimelle's blog. Wednesday was a day for greys, shadows and black crafting, we were to use the photos that we had posted the week before. I had posted collages all week and didn't really want a page with the collage on it so instead I'm using these black and white photos I took in Paris in 1990.

I'm so pleased with this page, it was totally inspired by this one. This blog is one that I have marked as one of my favourites, I love Keisha's simple style. The photos of her children and home are nothing short of inspirational. I decided to use my existing stash but I did think if I had the Cricut that I am so craving I could have made a really pretty scalloped square and 'doily' for the monogram.

I've been working in Great Yarmouth for the last three days and have just got back home this evening. I was feeling pretty fed up because the bed in the hotel and a four and a half hour drive home have made my back really sore. I hopped in the bath and had a really long soak which made me feel a bit brighter, so I thought I'll have a quick look at my e-mails. I opened the blind in my office to see this. I grabbed the camera and took some photos as quick as a flash, luckily I caught it, because now it's gone. I just stood there looking at it and realised I had a big grin on my face. I guess tonight my pot of gold at the end of this rainbow was for it to lift my mood and now I can relax with a nice cuppa.

Here's my take on this weeks pencil lines sketch challenge 139 . I've got quite a few pages done recently, then my brother turned up with three more sets of photos. Better put my thinking cap back on.

It's a colour challenge over on Stamp with us this week, this was the inspiration. Here is my card, perfect as I needed a birthday card this week. The Stampin Up products used were: Stamp Sets - Happy Everything Cardstock - Whisper White, Real Red, Bashful Blue Inkpads - Bordering Blue, Pixie Pink, Basic Black Punches - Circle Scallop, 3/4" circle, label punch (american catalogue) Stampin Write Pen - Real Red Brayer

I was about to make a page for the scrap with symbolic colour challenge when I remembered this page, I'd actually pulled out the same picture with the prompt for white in mind. White stands for hope, innocence, surrender, peace, purity, brides, babies, communions and all things new.

The final day for a week of colour photos over on Shimelle's blog is a day for cool pastels . This one was hard, I love pastel colours but I couldn't seem to photograph them very well, the strong sun is bleaching the colours completely. I had to go to my library and pick out some to complete the collage but this is what I've come up with. 1. Allium 2. Peony 3. Greeting card 4. Hyacinth 5. Chipboard flower 6. Tulips 7. Clematis 8. Washing on line 9. Ribbon jars 10. Prima flowers 11. Amarylis 12. Rose Here are the whole weeks collgaes in one. Monday - a day for greens , this was my favourite. Tuesday - a day for red, rose and pinks . Wednesday - a day for greys, shadows and blacks . Thursday - a day for blue . Friday - a day for all things light . Saturday a day for earth tones . Sunday - a day for cool pastels (see above). This was really a fun week in this month of colour project.

I thought this was going to be a hard one but I took my camera out into the garden where I have just spent a back breaking couple of hours tidying up the corner where my bench is. I quickly managed to snap a few pictures and then had a little look in my library of photos and this is what I came up with. Today is a day for earth tones . 1. Muddy child Chiang Mai, Thailand 2. Home decor 3. Acer 4. Autumn leaves 5. Autumn leaves - Canada 6. Breakfast 7. Heuchera 8. Coffee 9. Heuchera 10. Garden bench 11. Hydrangea in bark 12. Garden ornament

The first challenge on Shimelle' s month of colour prompts was to record your favourite colour, I posted some photos of mt favourite colour here . I made this page after I'd been to the final lesson for the SDU course. We were arranging our crop that is included in the course and played with the Cricut again. I had this page in mind for the crop so we cut out the pieces I was going to use, unfortunately I couldn't wait so I've finished it. I'll now have to find another picture to use. The page fits a couple of challenges (by accident rather than design), firstly it's in my favourite colours green and brown so fits Shimelle's challenge to scrap you favourite colour . The second is challenge 3 on the journalling challenges blog and that was to scrap an affirmation. Credit for the photo goes to Anna Bowkiss , this was taken on the recent Scrapping Angels retreat.

Day 5 of Shimelle's week of colour photos is a day for all things light , this one wasn't too difficult for me. I must be getting into my stride with the pictures, I'm combining taking pictures each day with photos that I've already got. This weeks prompts were timed perfectly with me having a week off, OK I've been very sick but if I'm stuck at home this project was perfect. 1. The Peak - Hong Kong 2. Craft room 3. Invitation 4. Mock orange blossom 5. Royal wedding poppy 6. a stroll on the beach 7. Mmmm coffee 8. Living room 9. Taj Mahal 10. Light through flowers 11. Zantedschia 12. White lilac

And finally my third entry in one day. Over on Shimelle 's month of colour challend today is A day for Blue. It's beginning to look like I'm stalking Shimelle's blog. 8-) 1. Delphinium 2. Garden ornament 3. Statue of Liberty - New York 4. Flowers (can't remember the name) 5. Palm tree - Kenya 6. Blue skies 7. Garden lantern 8. Hyacinths 9. Wybosoton Lakes - Cambridgeshire 10. Chiang Mai airport - Thailand 11. Home decor 12. Geraniums in plants pots

One of the challenges from Shimelles month of colour was to use to crack the colour wheel and make a page. I have recently been attending an SDU course and this was one of the lessons, so armed with my colour wheel I decided to give it a go. Here is the result and the colour combination I used was split complementary. I would never have put this shade of blue with this orange and yellow before I studied the colour wheel. I often look at a page and feel it's not complete, since studying the wheel I've realised it need another colour introducing and now things are much simpler.I wanted to scrap these photos for a while and while I was on the course one of the tutors was demonstrating the Cricut Expression (which I now want). She cut the yellow swirl design for me and challenged me to make a page using it, so this page has solved two challenges.

I think I've turned a corner now and for the first time in a week I feel like I've got some energy. I have washing on the line all the windows open to try and blow some germs out and a sparkling clean bathroom. I still sound like Barry White though. I've also managed to catch up on some of my projects starting with Pencil Lines sketch 138 .

I finally gave in and went to the doctors again, I am just not getting better which is very unlike me. I can usually shake things off quite quickly but this has been a week now and I still sound like Barry White when I talk. It seems I've got a bad viral infection that I just have to ride out. I felt I had to go out today so I took a ride over to Craftzone and had a look round. Today's colour challenge over on Shimelles blog is Greys, shadows and black. This was really hard for me but I managed it. 1. Potato Masher 2. Shoes 3. Picture 4. Light fitting 5. Picture frame 6. Ebony afro comb 7. Punches 8. Book ends 9. Mobile phone 10. The Peak - Hong Kong 11. Sandals 12. Chair

This one was a little more difficult. I like the colours but they don't always immediately appeal to me. Still it gave me chance to have a go at editing the pictures. 1. Inkpads 2. Rose 3. Fuchsia 4. Flower vase 5. Car 6. Prima flowers 7. Hair grip 8. Hanging basket 9. Pink lady apple 10. papercrafted butterfly box 11. skirt 12. Ribbon jars

Yesterday Shimelle's month of colour challenge was to record everything green on our day. This wasn't difficult for me, it's my favourite colour and the house is full of it. I didn't have to wander very far, lucky as I'm not doing very well at shaking off this chest infection. 1. Unripe plums 2. Candle holder 3. Kitchen walls and floor 4. leaf 5. Cutting boards 6. Home decor 7. House plant 8. Magazine basket 9. Punches 10. Garden 11. Home decor 12. Cushions & throw

My nephew recently achieved his black belt in karate, we are so proud of him. He is so dedicated and worked really hard for it. I have a real problem getting decent photos of these boys where they aren't staring up at a plasma screen and hanging onto controls for one game or another. I promised him I would make a page to celebrate his black belt if he would pose for some photos. Imagine my shock when I got 16 and they had to go in a specific order. Personally I don't like too many photos on a page I think it looks too busy, but my brother likes lots of pictures. He challenges me each time to make layouts that don't look the same and have as many pictures on as I can. I manage to sneak the odd one through with only one or two pictures on it. Here is the layout I came up with and I'm really pleased with it, I kept it really simple to compensate for the number of pictures and spread them over two pages. The star on the top left pulls out for Jake to put his journalling o...

I've just been to Asda so that I could get out of the house. I needed to collect some photos for a scrap page I've been promising my nephew for a while. It's not a supermarket I use often, not for any reason other than the location, I hate driving through town and to get to Asda that's exactly what I do. While I was waiting I had a coffee and a stroll down the magazine aisle. That's when I found these little beauties. They were 49p for 200 and I immediately thought journalling spots, then I thought cute post-it's. It made me chuckle that I thought of a crafting use before I saw what they were really meant to be. I love a bargain. Other great news my brother has finally fitted the radiator in my craft room, only 5 1/2 months after it leaked. It's a good job I wasn't paying him, it's taken 5 visits to my house and twice as many trips to take bits and pieces back to the suppliers. Finally the craft room is complete.

I made the Stamp with Us fab five again, I can't believe it. See the card here . I have to admit it's probably one of my favourites that I've made. The challenge is now on to keep this going, this one makes it a fabulous three times now. The first card can be seen here and the second one here . It has really cheered me up today to make fab five again, I've had a sore chest and one of those nightmare coughs that gives you a headache and stops you from sleeping. This morning I woke with laryngitis, what makes it worse is I've got this week off work. I was feeling very miserable then I started to do my rounds of my favourite blogs to find this lovely surprise. Hooray! Thank you to everybody for your lovely comments . This weeks theme is Congratulations, here is this weeks entry from me for the challenge. Stampin Up products used were: Cardstock - Whisper White, Bashful Blue, Real Red Double sided paper - Simmer Picnic Inkpads - Basic Black Stamp Sets - Polka Dot, Che...

Here is my entry for this weeks pencil lines sketch challenge number 137. I love strawberries and this photo was taken in 1983/84 of my self and my sister with her two small boys (who are now men). The youngest boy Robert just plonked himself down in the strawberry field and ate his way as far down one of the rows as he could manage. When we came to get the strawberry baskets weighed the cashier took one look at Robert's face covered in strawberry juice and suggested we just weigh Robert. I didn't want to crop this photo down to a square because I liked the 'emptiness' on the right of the photo, it reminds me of some areas in America where you see nothing but a broken down shelter.

Todays entry on Shimelles blog is to spin the colour wheel and then do a page with the colours. Here are my colours, this was the first spin as well. I've got next week off work so these projects are stacking up nicely to keep me entertained.

The talented Shimelle Laine is doing a month of colour for June. It looks like it's going to be fun. I love Shimelle's projects her prompts are so inspiring. I signed up for her here, there and everywhere project and I'm loving it. I even went out and took hundreds of photos that has made be look again at where I live, the prompts were so good. This one looks like it's going to be the same. Oh and for the record green is my favourite colour.